Just one week after being released from the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center, a man reportedly led Williamson County authorities on a pursuit in a stolen car.
NOLENSVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Just one week after being released from the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center, a man reportedly led Williamson County authorities on a pursuit in a stolen car.
On Thursday, Oct. 3, members of the Nolensville Police Department (NPD) were finishing up lunch and heading to their patrol cars in the parking lot of a Nolensville Road eatery when a license plate recognition (LPR) camera got a hit on a Kia Soul that was reported stolen from Nashville.
The officers saw the Kia pass by, so they quickly caught up to the driver, who was later identified as 46-year-old Meumamy Phongphat, and initiated a traffic stop.
The suspect stopped and police issued commands, yelling, “Driver, step out!” However, Phongphat reportedly took off, heading south on Nolensville Road.
News 2 learned that the suspect spent almost a year in the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center for theft and drug possession. According to jail records, he was released on Thursday, Sept. 26, exactly one week before this wild chase.
Dash camera footage shows Phongphat driving recklessly through a construction zone, running red lights, and crossing the double yellow line. At one point in the pursuit, officers thought they saw him throw powder out the window. Later, when he was boxed in, he veered dangerously around the patrol car. Shortly afterward, Phongphat drove through the grassy median on the other side of the road and then swerved behind a car waiting at a stop sign as he tried to escape.
When speeds and road conditions became too dangerous, NPD canceled the chase, but by that point, the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office’s chopper was in the air. Within minutes, deputies said they boxed the suspect in on Interstate 840 and took the 46-year-old into custody, with some resistance.
Authorities learned the Kia was stolen by peeling back the steering column.
“I can’t speak highly enough of the Williamson County Sheriff’s Department, how they responded, [were] able to apprehend the suspect, and the job that they did during the pursuit and ultimately taking him into custody. They did a fantastic job,” said NPD Lt. Josh Combs.
Officials said one of the NPD vehicles did sustain some minor damage during the chase. As for Phongphat, he is facing a slew of charges, including aggravated assault on an officer since the Kia came in contact with a police car at one point.
Once again, NPD said LPR cameras are effective tools that allow smaller departments to quickly identify and arrest suspects.